Food for Work/Food for Training

Through the Food for Work/Food for Training project, Catholic Relief Services is reaching out and supporting the poorest and most marginalized families in the southern rural areas of the West Bank. As studies have shown, these areas were among the most negatively impacted by the Al-Aqsa Intifada. In addition, regular closures now isolate the people living in these communities.

CRS delivers food baskets to beneficiaries in the West Bank.

This project aims to maintain the dignity of needy Palestinian people by offering food in exchange for work and training. Within the Food for Work component of the program, people are required to work on small, organized projects to contribute to the improvement of their communities in order to receive rations of food. As a result, public infrastructure within these communities, including retaining walls for schools, public clinics and internal roads, has been improved.

Because local women cannot participate in construction work, we instead provide them with training courses on different topics such as home gardening, food production and health awareness. These trainings raise the women's awareness about many issues and strengthen their self esteem. These trainings also encourage local women to venture outside their homes resulting in improved social relations among the women in the community. Some women use the skills they acquire from training courses in food production and sewing to help them establish their own business and contribute to the family income.

This project methodology sets CRS apart from other NGOs working on relief projects due to the participatory approach and the high quality of the project itself. This program has had a very positive impact on the people we serve, and it has changed their perspectives and attitudes about relief projects and the work of international organizations in general. This approach, promoted by CRS, is now being replicated by other non-governmental organizations.

Khader's Story

The Second Intifada or "uprising," beginning in September 2000, had devastating effects on countless Palestinians — depriving them of work and their livelihoods. Khader Emwas is 33 years old and a father of four, living in Bani Naim in the Hebron Governorate. Six years ago, he worked as a street vendor in Israel making a decent living. However, with the closing of Israel to West Bank Palestinians, Khader was unable to continue with his small business. "I used to earn plenty of money as a street vendor in Israel, but after the Intifada it was hard to find a job. My family still needed my income to cover our basic expenses," Khader explained.

Local beneficiaries attending a training course.

In cooperation with the UN's World Food Programme, Catholic Relief Services implemented a Food for Work program in Bani Naim. In consultation with the village council, villagers agreed that construction of a nursery would improve vegetable and fruit crop yields and precarious food situation in the village. Under the Food for Work program, able-bodied villagers, such as Khader, exchanged their labor for food commodities such as flour, chickpeas, sugar and oil. At the end of the project, an agricultural nursery was built in Bani Naim guaranteeing seasonal harvests of vegetables and tree seedlings which are now planted in home gardens and purchased at a low price by local farmers. Khader reflected on his situation, "The food commodities I received from the Food for Work program meant a lot to my family. My wife used the flour and cooking oil to supplement our diet. She used the money we would normally use to buy these items, to help cover school expenses for my children."